In this series we’ll take a fresh look at resources and how they are used. We’ll go beyond natural resources like air and water to look at how efficiency in raw materials can boost the bottom line and help the environment. We’ll also examine the circular economy and design for reuse — with an eye toward honoring those resources we do have.

While changes at home can’t solve the many environmental crises we face today, they can sure help. Through this series, we’ll explore how initiatives like curbside compost pick-up, rebates on compost bins, and efficient appliances can help families reduce their impact without breaking the bank.

Despite decades -- centuries even -- of global efforts, slavery can still be found not just on the high seas, but around the world and throughout various supply chains. Through this series on forced labor, sponsored by C&A Foundation, we’ll explore many different types of bonded and forced labor and highlight industries where this practice is alive and well today.

In this series we examine how companies should respond to national controversy like police violence and the BLM movement to best support employees and how can companies work to improve equality by increasing diversity in their ranks directly.

Compost is often considered a panacea for the United States’ tremendous food waste problem. Indeed, composting is a much better option than putting spoiled food in a garbage can destined for a landfill.

Abu Dhabi National Energy (TAQA), the United Arab Emirates state-owned oil exploration company, sold its 7 percent share of Tesla Motors. TAQA made a tidy $113 million profit and then made its portfolio a tad less diverse by investing the money in a northern Iraq power plant.

TAQA took advantage of Tesla’s recent stock rally, the value of which has doubled since the energy company received the automaker’s shares. The high end electric vehicle manufacturer says it is on target to reach profitability next year, but nevertheless TAQA had decided Tesla was not a core investment.

For TAQA and Abu Dhabi, the stock’s sale was a very quick buck. TAQA had only had the 7 million shares of stock, which was 7 percent of Tesla’s equity, since December 2010. But for Abu Dhabi, which has 94 percent of the UAE’s oil reserves and manages over half of the country’s GDP, the future for now is investing in energy projects throughout the Middle East. The emirate is not exactly exiting its investments in the automobile industry, however; it is still the largest shareholder in Daimler via one of its sovereign wealth funds.

Observers who wonder if this is a sign that the UAE and other Gulf countries are not confident about clean technology and clean energy investments are reading too much in this relatively small transaction. Abu Dhabi is still moving forward on its Masdar City complex, a futuristic zero-carbon and zero-waste city to which Siemens will relocate its Middle East headquarters. A $600 million solar power plant is due to launch later this year. Nearby, glitzy Dubai is mulling the purchase of solar from panels installed on the city’s office buildings and houses. With nearby Qatar investing in everything from solar to smart grid technologies and even Saudi Arabia building LEED-certified projects, the future of green technology and renewable energy in the Middle East, quite counterintuitively considering the importance of the region’s oil and gas sector, is still bright.